Point of View

If you’ve ever owned horses, you probably know that cleaning the barn first thing in the morning is good for the soul. I use that time to think. Recently, before going out to take care of my four-legged friends, I started pondering the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council’s recent resolution, the response from industry, and had a good shovel session to sift through it all.

The conversations began in 2015 with a public lecture at Kachemak Bay Campus called “Heroin Hits Homer: The Facts about Heroin.” This panel of local subject matter experts featured discussions about the impact of heroin on our community. One panelist was Dr. Sarah Spencer, D.O., a local physician who is board certified in addiction medicine. Dr. Spencer currently provides medication assisted treatment for substance use disorders at Ninilchik Traditional Council Community Clinic.

February, the love month, celebrates Valentine’s Day the 14th and February 17th Kindness Day. This article will be published after the fact. Even after both days, it seems this message can apply 365 days of the year. At least we all might try this, and perhaps many in Homer do this as a matter of fact, such has been my experience on several occasion.

This year the governor and some legislators are seeking to use Permanent Fund earnings — for the first time in history — to fund government. Before embarking down that path, Alaskans deserve to have their Permanent Fund Dividends protected, and the only way to do that now is to enshrine the PFD in the constitution.

For several years I have had an emergency bag. You know, the kind for impending natural disasters, gloves, flashlight all the stuff you think you may need in such an event. It’s morphed over the years; the kids have grown up moved on and hopefully have their own bags now. I used to recheck it every now and then, but that hasn’t happened in several years. However, I know exactly where it is and that it has what I will need in it.

The current national spotlight on the prevalence and insidiousness of sexual harassment is a welcome paradigm shift in our culture. Even though I have worked for 36 years in a field traditionally dominated by men, I myself never experienced egregious levels of misconduct. In fact, my welcome to the legal community in Homer in 1984 as a young, naïve female attorney was respectful and supportive, thanks in great part to the open mindedness of Homer’s attorneys, judges and court staff. I hope I didn’t take their support for granted.

I do the most writing at night. Head on the pillow. Brain swarming with thoughts. My jaw tightens and — rather than rest, the restless thoughts crowd in. So I start writing in my mind, putting the thoughts in place. Explaining them to myself. Practicing the explanation to others. This one in particular keeps me up at night.

We owe a huge debt of gratitude to our Congressional Delegation Senator Lisa Murkowski, Senator Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young. They delivered the ultimate Christmas gift to Alaska, the ability to open the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for safe and environmentally responsible oil exploration.

January is Cervical Health Awareness Month, and Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic (KBFPC) wants you to know that there’s a lot you can do to prevent cervical cancer. Each year, more than 15,000 individuals in the United States get cervical cancer.

Organizations around the world are divesting from fossil fuels, and a lot of the talk is about the moral imperative to do so in the face of climate change. But at this point it may also make financial sense. The Permanent Fund has been losing money on fossil fuel investments, and it is reasonable to expect they’ll lose money even faster in the future.

This holiday season, Alaskans can have a renewed sense of hope for good jobs, larger paychecks, stronger growth, and enduring prosperity. The reason why is today’s passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which includes two historic opportunities for our state.

Calling on all Alaskans! If you don’t read anything else political between now and the next legislative session in January, please bear through the numbers and read this piece. You will be shocked but you also will be well-equipped to answer the questions above.

In the midst of a busy season, another deadline looms as open enrollment for the 2018 Health Insurance Marketplace ends Dec. 15. The open enrollment period is the time for folks to choose their health insurance coverage for 2018. This year, Alaskans have five plan options available on the marketplace.

Moving oil is a risky business, especially across Cook Inlet’s notoriously rough waters. But who assumes the risk? And if it’s Alaskans who depend on healthy fisheries who bear the risk, how much risk are we willing to accept?

Changes are once again in the wind for the old Homer Middle School, fondly known as the HERC. This time, there’s conversations among some City Council members to sell the land and building. The HERC (Homer Education &Recreation Complex) sits on a 4.3-acre chunk of prime Homer real estate on the corner of the Sterling Bypass and Pioneer Avenue which some consider to be the “gateway” into Homer.

Tourists and Alaskans alike know that my hometown, Homer, sits at the end of the Kenai Peninsula, overlooking Kachemak Bay. But they may not be familiar with a small cove across the bay that’s been in my family since the 1940’s. I have grown up in this magical place, drinking fresh spring water, swimming in the lagoon, and walking across the only pure sand beach in the area.